"Eight percent of all wages and 5 percent of all jobs in Jackson and Swain counties are generated by a single employer, Harrah's Cherokee Casino. Imagine how hard-hit those counties would be were the casino not there and how much more they would benefit from Las Vegas-style card dealers.

The figures show that the average wage at the casino is higher than in the two counties as a whole and that without casino jobs the jobless rates would be much higher than the 8.8 percent in Jackson and 11.1 percent in Swain reported for May.

Economic impact in the two counties was estimated at $300 million in 2009, plus $82 million in capital investment. In addition, $1 million in goods and services were bought in Buncombe County and $367,000 in Haywood Count last year.

The greatest beneficiaries of the casino are the 14,500 members of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians. In 2010, the tribe received more than $210 million in casino profits."

Get the Story:
Editorial: Casino study shows much good, room to improve (The Asheville Citizen-Times 7/8)

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Report finds big economic impact of Eastern Cherokee casino (6/27)